The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1887-02-05
FORTY-NINTH CONGRESS.
SENATE.

dShcu IOI 1umeuldIe CONSIDERATION.
Hale objected to the immediate con.
sideration of the bill, and it therefore
went to the calendar Hoar giving
notice that he would call it up at the
first opportunity.
a message from the House requesting
the return of the papers in the matter
of the losl Northern Pacific forfeiture
bill was presented and the request or
dered to be complied with.
The Senate then resumed con-
siderafion of the railroad attorney
DILL. The first vote was taken on the
amendment offered by Hoar, making 1t
unlawful for member of Congress o
accept employment as an attorney in
opposition to the United States in any
case in which the United Sta es NAV be
party or in which its interests may be
concerned, or from any subsidized rail
road company, if such mem Der ha, e
cause to believe that measures espe i
ally affecting the interests Of such raj =
road are pending before Congress or
are about 10 he so pending during MS
term of office.
The amendment (Which was in the
nature of a substitute to the origina
BILLY was agreed to-ysas 26, nays 81
The next question was on the amend
ment offered by Mr.. salisbury as sub
stitute to the substitute reported by
the Judiciary committee.
Beck argued against the Salisbury
amendment. If that amendme"t =
came law, he said, it was lit best-r
than nothing, but it was so nearly
nothing that it was hardly worth
while for the Senate to take up
time about it. II allowed any
Senator or Representative to be counsel
in all great suits OF these railroad COM
panies. Thew might sit in either
house with 100000 of money of the
Union Pacific, the Central Pacific or
Northern Pacific, in their pockets, and
yet, because they had got no fee in a
particular matter, which Congress was
considering, although they might have
received fees in other matters and been
employed on purpose-without their
knowledge and consent, perhaps ley
were to be regarded as disintere t. d
men. He appealed to the Senate to
take fair vote on the bin as presented,
and as once voted for and passed
in the Senate. Let there not be any
evasion on that question, but let them
not go before the country and assume
that they are doing something which
was equivalent to the original bill, and
which would reach the evil. The whole
fact was that every substitute and
amendment suggested was either to
make the bill ridiculous o. leave the
evil untouched. AS long as members
of Congress could be employed by these
railroad corporations under all sorts of
pretenses, the object being merely to
secure friendship, the evil would be
left untouched.
Hoar characterized the original bill
as grossly unconstitutional, awkward,
crude, Ill drawn, i'll considered, ill-con
ceived scheme, which was not only an
insult to the Senate, but an insult to the
American people. The bill was not the
outcome of any popular or public de-
mand. 1t came from anonymous
articles published by blackmaileIs and
stockholders in irresponsible newspa-
pers. He had heard enough of this ar
rogant, insulting, domineeriL CAT
tempting to frigbLen Senators from
what they considaRd their duty.
Mr.. Saulsbury's amendment was re-
jected- 26 yeas, q nays.
The committee substitute was re-
jected-yeas none, nays 81.
The amendment offered by Hoar
making it unlawful for members of
Congress to hold real estate in the Dis
trict of Columbia Except as residences),
was rejected-yeas' 6, nays As, the yeas
being Butler, Hale, Hoar, Pugh, TelIe 7
and Payne.
Finally Hoar's first amendment
Slightly modi6sD was adopted as a
substitute 80, nays 31-a1d then
the bill in that shape was reported 10
the Senate, the proct edings up to this
point being in committee of the whole.
Beck moved his original bill as sub
stitute, and it was rejected-yeas II,
nays So
a modification of Platt's amendment
was offered by Aldrich. and it was de-
feated-yeas 10, nays 80 At this stage
of the proceedings, Teller rose and ex-
pressed his intention ofvoting against the
bill. 1t had been said by the gentleman
from Kentucky that those who were
opposed to this class of legislation were
dishonest.
Beck (,nterruptinge THAT is not
true; that is absolutely untrue"
Teller, proceeding without needing
the interruption, said that those who
were opposed to this legislation had
been told, in substance, that they
wanted members of tie Senate to have
their pockets full of money of
the great corporations; that they
wanted Senators to have that in
their pockets which could corrupt
and destroy their judgments. The SEN
ator Beck said that this statement was
untrue. He did not say that the hon.
orable Senator had said in words that
those who oppose the bill were dishon-
est, The honorable Senator's state
ment was that this legislation was re-
sisted because its opponents wanted
some Senators TO come into the body,
having the money of corporations in
their pockets.
Mr.. Beck-"That is quite as untrue;
never said that
Mr.. TeIler-"If he did not, my ears
are of butlittle value, and could have
heard but imperfectly what he said
to-day on that subject. l do not need
any legislation to keep me honest, TO
keep me from what the people l repre-
sent believe will effect my judgment. ]
RELY on my own conscience to do that.
Continuing, be declared that he did not
propose, by silence, to have any-
body say be was resisting the public
clamor. A man who would take fee
from railroad company for the pur-
pose of doing its business and then